Tag: chicago

Mika Horibuchi at 55 Walker

Betrayal and concealment are words applied to Mika Horibuchi’s deceptively masterful paintings at 55 Walker, which replicate her grandmother’s amateur watercolors.  At first glance, triangular tabs appear to be adhered to the surface to hold up a printed photo.  A closer look reveals that they, like the ‘photo,’ are meticulously painted.  The cat image is a rendition of a printed snapshot sent to the artist in Chicago by her grandmother in Japan, who has taken up painting later in life.  A nearby display case shows the original snapshots along with other photos, drawings, and more.  Here, the professional mimics the hobbyist, but the work conveys respect and consideration.  (On view in Tribeca through March 26th).

Mika Horibuchi, Watercolor of Pi-ko, oil on linen, 42 x 55 x 1 ¾ inches, 2021.

Karon Davis at Deitch Projects

In her impressive New York solo show debut, Karon Davis transforms Deitch Projects’ cavernous SoHo space into the 1969 Chicago courtroom in which Bobby Seale stood trial bound and gagged.  Before a plaster cast of the Black Panther leader, a towering bench houses a replica of Judge Julius Hoffman, who Davis describes in the trial as ‘brutal and monstrous.’  Here, on the gallery’s elevated platform, a row of jurors looks on impassively, isolated in red and blue cases that disengage them with the scene unfolding before them.  (On view in SoHo through April 24th).

Karon Davis, Jury Member #3, plaster bandages, plaster, glass-eyes, steel, acrylic, plywood, white paint, 70 x 22 x 22 inches.

Orkedeh Torabi in ‘Auguries of Innocence’ at Fredericks Freiser Gallery

Finding that her female figures were often misinterpreted, Iranian-born, Chicago-based artist Orkedeh Torabi decided to depict only men as she continued to make work commenting on patriarchal societies.  The title of this painting, ‘Where are all the houries?,’ a standout in a group show at Fredericks Freiser Gallery, imagines the arrival in heaven of a martyr who is looking for his virginal beauties.  (On view through Feb 22nd).

Orkideh Torabi, Where are all the houries?, fabric dye on stretched cotton, 37 h x 43 w, 2018.

Alex Bradley Cohen at Nicelle Beauchene Gallery

Young Chicago-based artist Alex Bradley Cohen channels the vibrant color and inventive perspectives of David Hockney’s 80s paintings in expressively distorted portraits of friends and family now on view at Nicelle Beauchene Gallery.  Against a fiery orange carpet and cool blue background beyond the terrace, this subject comes across as both guarded and open, inviting viewers to engage further.  (On the Lower East Side through Nov 10th).

Alex Bradley Cohen, Morley Music, acrylic on canvas, 36 x 24 inches, 2018.

Gordon Parks at Jack Shainman Gallery

Granted access to Nation of Islam leadership and communities in 1963, Life photographer Gordon Parks shot remarkable images including this portrait of women’s leader Ethel Sharrieff. Now on view at Jack Shainman Gallery’s 24th Street location, the arresting show overviews selections from Parks’ lesser-known yet powerful series. (On view through Feb 10th).

Gordon Parks, Ethel Sharrieff, Chicago, Illinois, gelatin silver print, 20 x 16 inches, 1963.